Older People's Experiences of Loneliness in the UK: Does Gender Matter?

Abstract

The extent and nature of loneliness in later life does not show a consistent relationship with gender. Our study investigates whether there are differences in the nature and extent of loneliness amongst older men and women in contemporary Britain.Loneliness was measured using a self-report four-point scale in a nationally representative survey of people aged 65+ living in the community.Survey response rate was 77 per cent and the sample of 999 approximates to that of the general population. Approximately half of our sample 53 per cent were women. Compared with males in the sample women were significantly more likely to be widowed, live alone and have direct contact with friends and relatives. Preliminary analysis identified statistically significant differences between men and women in and self-reported loneliness (and changes over the previous decade). Ordered logistic regression, indicated that gender was no longer independently associated with loneliness once the confounding influences of marital status, age and living arrangement were excluded.The overall self-reported prevalence of severe loneliness shows little difference between men and women, challenging the stereotype that loneliness is a specifically female experience.

The diversity of befriending by, and of, older people

“…When differences in marital status, health, and living arrangements are controlled for, the number of men and women experiencing loneliness is very similar (Victor et al, 2006 (Beach and Bamford, 2014). In recent years, there has been great interest in the way in which gendered interventions, such as Men in Sheds, might help older men (Milligan et al, 2013) but there does not seem to be any evidence whether men experiencing loneliness are less likely than women to be offered befriending services or if they are more likely to refuse to use them.…”

Loneliness, social support networks, mood and wellbeing in community‐dwelling elderly

“…In our sample, a quarter of men and 40% of women experienced loneliness. Studies of the elderly in 'Western-type' cultures have generally reported prevalences of loneliness of between 25-45% (Mullins et al, 1988;Lindgren et al, 1994;Holmen and Furukawa, 2002;Lauder et al, 2004;Savikko et al, 2005;Lauder et al, 2006;Routasalo et al, 2006;Victor et al, 2006). We also found smaller but still significant prevalences of painful loneliness (roughly one in ten participants) and intrusive loneliness (roughly one in twenty participants), similar to Victor's finding of a 7% prevalence of 'severe loneliness' in a large UK sample (Victor et al, 2005) and Hawthorn's 7% prevalence of significant perceived social isolation in an Australian community sample (Hawthorne, 2008).…”

The demographics of loneliness among older people in Perth, Western Australia

“…While women are generally lonelier than men [e.g. 4], once marital status, age and living arrangement are controlled, the relationship between gender and loneliness disappears [13]. Gender difference also depends on the measurement used.…”